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Monday, February 27, 2017

Writing conferences are glorious events for us writers. But
attending one comes at a cost. We spend some serious time and money to get
there, and we’re eager to mine every little nugget out of each workshop.

But conferences can also be taxing, both mentally and
physically. How do we get the most of the workshops without overloading on the
whole experience? It’s all about pacing.

First of all, remind yourself that not every single workshop
or panel is going to be chock full of non-stop aha moments. In fact, you
might only glean one or two useful writer-y tidbits from each session.
Hopefully, though, by the end of the conference, you’ll have gathered so many
tips that your head does that brain-shrapnel thing.

If you arrive to class early, find a seat in the first couple
of rows. This allows late comers a chance to nip into the back without feeling
embarrassed. And no worries about being “too close” to the presenters--they’re
all housebroken. In fact, sit up front and give the presenter a friendly
greeting or smile. It’s always appreciated. Additional bonus: if the presenter
is the agent or editor you’ll be pitching to later in the conference, it can’t
help to make a warm first impression.

Speak to the person next to you. We writers spend so much
time in our heads that I use conferences as a chance to practice my
conversational skills. If you’re not sure what to say, here’s some opening
lines.

“Have you attended this conference before?”

“Crazy weather here in Colorado. What’d you think of
snow/rain/hail/sun/tornado/wind this morning/afternoon/evening?”

And the ever popular one: “What do you write?”

Be mindful, however, when folks ask YOU that question. Don’t
become the dreaded Coyote Writer. That’s the writer who won’t stop talking
about their book, and you have to chew your own arm off to free yourself. Just
like a coyote chews off its paw to escape a trap.

Ask the presenter questions. This is your opportunity to
pick authors’ and agents’ and publishers’ brains. It’s been said a bajillion
times, but it’s true: your question is probably one that others wish they had
the nerve to ask. So, go for it. Some of the best workshops I’ve attended (and
presented) were those where the audience asked loads of questions. Inquiry
begets more inquiry, so fire away.

I know this sounds terribly impolite, but I’ll take a risk
and say it: If you discover that you’re sitting in the wrong workshop for you,
even though it seemed like a perfect fit when you were scheduling your day,
find a way to ninja out the door. Time is precious, my precious. Do not waste
it. I know a lot of folks would say that’s rude to the presenter and to your
fellow audience members. I understand. And if you can’t do it discreetly, sit
tight.

But, as a presenter, I would rather not waste anyone’s time.
Plus, it could be that the person who just slipped out really had a legitimate
reason. I mean, have you seen the lines for the ladies’ room? When in doubt,
give the benefit of such.

That said, you may find yourself in a workshop or panel that
you weren’t crazy about attending, but you thought you “should” hear that
speaker, or your friend dragged you along. Give the presentation a chance. You
never know. I have to admit, there have been many times I’ve attended workshops
outside my comfort or interest zones and learned some pretty nifty stuff. All
grist for the ol’ writing mill.

If you can, take some time throughout each day to retreat to
the Library (see conference map) or a quiet corner of the lobby to digest what
you’re learning. Our brains need time—I believe it is about six hours—to
internalize new information. Re-writing your notes is one way to do this. There’s so much new information presented at conferences and it’s easy to get
overwhelmed or discouraged. You can’t do it all or learn it all. Take what you
can from each presentation and apply as needed.

If the weather is nice, don’t forget to step outside once in
a while and get a few minutes of Vitamin D and fresh air. The mountains are to
the west. The city and plains are to the east. And Pikes
Peak does not have an apostrophe. Take a deep breathe, marvel at
the joy that you are surrounded by your tribe, and then plunge back in.

About the Author: Darby Karchut is an award-winning author, dreamer, and compulsive dawn greeter. A native of New Mexico, she now lives in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, where she runs in blizzards and bikes in lightning storms. When not dodging death by Colorado, Darby is busy writing for children, teens, and adults. She is represented by Amanda Rutter at Red Sofa Literary.

Sunday, February 26, 2017

“Be ambitious for the work and not for the reward.” ~
Jeanette Winterson

Source: Wikipedia Winterson Warsaw Poland 2005

Jeanette Winterson, OBE, born Aug. 27, 1959,
is an award-winning English writer, who became famous with her first book,
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, a semi-autobiographical novel about a sensitive
teenage girl rebelling against conventional values.

Friday, February 24, 2017

By: Ann S. Hill Congratulations to Cynthia Kuhn
for her recent Agatha nomination for her novel, The Semester of Our
Discontent (Lila Maclean Academic Mysteries #1) The novel, published by
Henery Press, became available April 5, 2016 in both hard and softcover as well
as Kindle formats. The author’s intriguing plot summary as well as her bio
follow:

English professor Lila Maclean
is thrilled about her new job at prestigious Stonedale University until she
finds one of her colleagues dead. More attacks on professors follow, the only
connection a curious symbol found at each of the crime scenes. Putting her
scholarly skills to the test, Lila gathers evidence, but her search is
complicated by an unexpected nemesis, a suspicious investigator, and an ominous
secret society. Rather than earning an “A” for effort, she receives a threat
featuring the mysterious emblem and must act quickly to avoid failing her
assignment…and becoming the next victim.

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Editor's Note: Special thanks to guest blogger, Michael Alvear, Author of The Bulletproof Writer for covering such an important topic to writers.

Ever greet a literary
rejection with such a disproportionate reaction you think, “Where the

heck did
that come from?”

There’s a reason. And
it isn’t because you’re overly sensitive, lack self-esteem or emotional
control. It’s because your brain is wired to perceive social rejection as a
mortal threat.

That’s the consensus
of neuropsychologists like Rick Hanson who’ve proven that the brain has a
built-in negative bias that gets easily “hijacked” by alarm. Imaging studies
show that the human brain produces more neural activity when it’s exposed to
negative than positive stimuli. The negative is perceived faster and easier
and stays with us longer. Hanson coined a memorable phrase to describe this
phenomenon: “The brain is like Velcro for negative experiences but Teflon
for positive ones.”

What’s This Got to Do with
Writers?

A lot. It
explains why the pleasure of an editor’s acceptance Teflon) is not nearly as
intense as getting her rejection (Velcro).

Neuropsychologists
believe that we developed an out-sized reaction to social rejection as a
survival strategy. Back in the day (you know, like hundreds of thousands of years
ago) we survived by being part of a tribe. They gave us access to food, water,
and social structures to raise kids. Being cast out of the tribe meant almost
certain death. So over the course of thousands of years, the brain developed a
hypersensitivity to social acceptance. The earlier you could detect a tribal
leader’s dissatisfaction the earlier you could head off disaster. The people
who did not develop this hypersensitivity were likelier to be cast out of the
tribe and die.

Again, How Does That Apply
to Writers?

Let's say an editor
rejected your manuscript. Your conscious mind takes it in stride because you
know how hard it is to get published. But your brain reacts as if it were being
kicked out of the tribe (or more to the point, being prevented from joining the
tribe).

Wait, wait. What
tribe? The one called “Published Writers.” The one that can guarantee your
survival as a writer because it gives you money, resources, respect and access
to power brokers.

That, in essence, is
why you overreact to rejections. You and I are wired to react this way. The bad
news is that we are initially powerless to stop this response. The good news is
that it’s relatively easy to neutralize it, and over time, rewire your
brain to react differently.

How Writers Can
Overcome Their Brain’s Wiring

Upon receiving a
rejection, connect to your personal tribes. Prove your brain wrong. It thinks
you're being cast out or prevented from joining a tribe. By connecting with
family, friends and other writers (in person!) you neutralize the brain’s
alarm.

It’s best to connect
in person. Choose coffee over a phone call. But if you can’t, then a phone
call is okay. And if you can’t do that then take what psychologists call
“social bites” -- look at pictures of loved ones. Studies show they have an
amazing power to calm you. They are part of your tribes and make you feel
connected.

There are other simple
but powerful ways of rewiring your brain to transform your reaction to
rejection, but they are too detailed to describe here. I applied Rick Hanson’s
concepts specifically to writers in my book, but I encourage you to check out
his best seller, Hardwiring Happiness for a fuller understanding.

Developing a Coping
Strategy

Understanding how your
brain works will go a long way to building resiliency as a writer. But it
doesn't stop there. You must learn how to manage the real pain of rejection and
build a higher threshold for failure. Dean Simonton’s research (On The
Origins Of Genius) uncovered a profound revelation: Amongst the most
intelligent, creative, talented people the one differentiator that accounted
for success was the ability to cope with rejection.

When you fully
understand the enormity of his discovery you will realize, as I did a long time
ago, that in addition to improving your craft, you must improve your ability to
cope with rejection if you are to meet with success.

He’s been a frequent
contributor to National Public Radio’s All Things Considered and his work has
appeared in Newsweek, The Washington Post, Reader’s Digest, The New York Times, The Los
Angeles Times and The Huffington Post.

Monday, February 20, 2017

Query letters are a vital piece of the publishing world.
It's rare to land an agent without a solid query, and once you get that agent,
he or she has to query publishers on your behalf. Query letters are the
introduction to a piece of work, you the author, and any comparable titles
already on the marketplace.

Source: Pixabay

Query letters are so important. Pikes Peak Writers
has shifted some of its focus to representing this fact. Our fiction writing
contest, The Zebulon, has a query letter round. We've also replaced the typical
pitch session with a Query One-on-One session where you can get feedback on
your query letter, and, hopefully, make the initial contact with an agent or
editor that will lead to the path of publication.

There are numerous approaches to query letters that are
taught in classes, workshops, and seminars. No single approach is "the one
true way" to composing a query letter. There are a variety of designs to
presenting your work, but my favorite structure was taught to me a few years
back by Pam Howell while we
hung out at Pikes Peak WritersConference.

Her favorite style of query letters involves three parts,
with an optional introductory paragraph if you've personally interacted with the
agent somewhere. The three parts are: hook, book, cook. Let's dive into those
sections in more detail.

Hook

What will hook the reader, agent, or editor into your story?
Do your best to avoid questions, especially hypothetical ones. Stick to
interesting statements and facts about your story. Be concise and hit the high
points here because all you have is three to five sentences. I also make sure
to lead this paragraph with the genre, word count, and target market (young
adult, middle grade, adult, etc.). This lead-in information sets the stage and
allows the agent to know what to expect out of the rest of the query letter. I
conclude this paragraph with comparisons between my novel and one or two other
titles already on the market. Aim high, but don't claim to be "the next
[insert famous author here]."

Book

This is where you talk about the core plot and characters. Stick
to your main protagonist (or two if there is a split point of view). Don't
delve into the details in this area. That's what your synopsis is for. Keep
this paragraph (again, three to five sentences) focused on the tale you're
telling. This is probably the most difficult portion to write because
condensing your 100,000 word novel into a paragraph is rough. It can be done,
though. If you need help, look at the back cover copy of several of your
favorite novels. Practice writing some back cover copy for your own story. This
will naturally lead to content you can use here.

Cook

This is where you get to talk about yourself! Make all
content here pertinent to your writing and the novel. Don't include winning the
third-grade spelling bee or any non-critical details. You also want to list up
to your last three publication credits. If you're not published yet, just leave
that out. There's no need to state, "I currently have no publication
credits."

Miscellaneous Bits

I include the first and last name of the agent I'm querying
in the salutation. This prevents me from using "Ms." with the name
"Pat" and it turns out "Pat" is a man. It's the safe road
to go. I also go to their web site and use copy/paste to snag their name from
their own content. This keeps me from misspelling a name, and there are some
tricky last names out there.

I always include, "I look forward to your reply, and
thank you for your time in reading the submission," as a closing
statement.

Just below that I put something along the lines of "The
synopsis and first XXX chapters of the novel are below my contact information."
This reiterates the fact that I am able to follow instructions, and that I have
checked their submission guidelines on their web site.

The next thing is my contact information. I make sure they have
every available means of contacting me listed. This includes my physical
address, phone number, email address, and my Facebook and Twitter accounts. If
they want to get back in touch with a "yes," I don't want a
communication failure to turn it into a "no."

Once that's done, I copy/paste the requested materials into
the body of the email and send it off! Please make sure to read the agent's
query letter guidelines and only include material they want with the query
letter. If they don't specify additional content, only send the query letter.

Query Letter for Griffin's Feather

Here's my query letter for my novel that will be coming out
later in 2017:

Dear [AGENT NAME HERE]:

GRIFFIN'S FEATHER is an adult urban fantasy novel standing at
62,200 words. This is the first novel in what I plan to be a series. It is
about an immortal Roman Centurion working as a bounty hunter for the Ancients.
The deities and powerful entities of the distant past use the protagonist,
Marcus, as an agent to do their bidding. When bartering for payment, he asks
for copies of his missing father's journals. Marcus Barber, as he is known
today, uses his abilities of dogged determination, two millennia of experience,
and a few close friends to finish his jobs. While working for a pack of
egotistical Ancients who treat Marcus more like shared property than a person,
he searches for his still-living father. Griffin's
Feather would appeal to people who enjoyed Kevin Hearne's The Iron Druid Chronicles or the
invocation of mythology found in Neil Gaiman's American Gods.

Marcus must rescue Freyja's Daughter from a cult of
Ereshkigal in San Antonio, Texas as he recovers Nemesis's lost Griffin, frees a
captured Pixie on behalf of Cailleach, handles a "mundane" private
investigation for a mortal client, and chases down clues as to where his
father's next steps might lead. During the course of his adventures, bullets
fly, Barghests attack, a demi-goddess invades his mind, and he assaults a drug
dealer's stronghold at the Griffon's side. His immortal soul will be lost to
the Ancients if he fails in any of these tasks.

I am the current president of the Pikes Peak Writers and
received the 2014 Pikes Peak Writers Volunteer of the Year award. I was the
president of the Colorado Springs Fiction Writers Group from 2009 until 2013
and have been active in the Colorado Springs writing community since 2006. My
publication credits include stories in "An Uncommon Collection,"
"Phobias: A Collection of True Stories," and "Carnival of the
Damned."

I look forward to your reply and thank you for your time in
reading the submission.

The synopsis and first [XXX PAGES/CHAPTERS] of the novel are
below my contact information.

Sincerely,

J.T. Evans

Contact Information:

Cell Phone: 719-REDACTED

Email: REDACTED

Website: http://jtevans.net/

Twitter: @jtevans

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jtevans.writer

Address: REDACTED

===========

[ADDITIONAL MATERIAL GOES HERE]

J.T. Evans writes fantasy novels. He also dabbles with science fiction and horror short stories. He is the president of Pikes Peak Writers. When not writing, he secures computers at the Day Job, homebrews great beers, spends time with his family, and plays way too many card/board/role-playing games.

Sunday, February 19, 2017

I write when I’m inspired, and I see to it
that I’m inspired at nine o’clock every morning. ~Peter De Vries

Peter De Vries Source: Wikipedia

Peter De VriesFeb 27,
1910 – Sep 28, 1993 was an Americaneditorandnovelistknown for his satiric wit. He has been described by the
philosopherDaniel
Dennettas "probably the funniest writer on religion ever."

He joined the staff ofThe New Yorkermagazine
at the insistence ofJames Thurberand
worked there from 1944 to 1987, writing stories and touching up cartoon
captions. A prolific writer, De Vries wrote short stories, reviews, poetry,
essays, a play, novellas, and twenty-three novels.

Friday, February 17, 2017

Author Ann Perramond (pen name Ann Myers for
this series) has been nominated in the amateur sleuth category for an RT book
award. Her intriguing book summary follows:

Cinco de Mayo brings margaritas, guacamole—and murder—to the menu in the second Santa Fe
Café Mystery.

Tres Amigas Café chef Rita
Lafitte is whipping up green chile soufflés and chocolate flan cake to
celebrate Cinco de Mayo and prepare for a romantic dinner date. If only her
friend Linda, the daughter of Rita’s octogenarian boss Flori, could get into
the festive spirit. Linda’s humble food cart, Tía Tamales, is under siege from Crepe Empire, the
hottest stand in Santa Fe, and its owner, a pompous star chef named Napoleon.

Linda confronts Napoleon in a public argument
that leaves her dying from embarrassment. However, it’s Napoleon who ends up
dead. When Linda discovers his body, stabbed and pinned beneath her tamale
cart, she becomes the number-one suspect. Determined to prove Linda’s innocence, Rita
investigates. From Napoleon’s disgruntled
former employees to a shady health inspector, the list of suspects grows longer
than Flori’s strings of dried chiles. And when another corpse surfaces, Rita
must scramble to catch an elusive killer with an appetite for murder…

We’ll be watching to see whether you win, Ann,
and we’ll be checking out your book in the meantime.

Wednesday, February 15, 2017

One of the things I heard about my work when I
first started writing fiction was readers cared about my plot, but they didn’t
care about the characters I’d created. So my question was, how do you create
characters readers care about?

I’d done my best up until that point to create the
characters I saw in my head, so I was clueless as to how to make readers care
about these people who were so real to me. But the answer is actually quite simple.

Tags.

Motivation.

Let’s take tags first. Tags is the term in fiction
writing given to character traits the reader can “see.” I learned them when I
had three walk-on characters all dressed the same in a prison environment, who
readers told me they couldn’t tell apart. And it got confusing for my readers.
So another writer said give them tags, short but specific physical
characteristics that are different for each one. A big space between a
character’s front teeth, big hair, rhinestone glasses, a limp, a mannerism like
rubbing their eyes a lot, and so on. So I gave each of those three walk-on
characters, a unique tag. And it worked.

Watch people and you’ll see all kinds of tags you can
make use of in your fiction. For example, one of the cheapest tricks in the
book is to give a character a cold or an allergy– especially a walk on
character. The writer has this character sneezing on others, or wiping their
nose, or doing something related to having a cold or an allergy, and that
sticks in the reader’s mind. Any time a character comes on to the “set” with
cold or allergy symptoms, the reader will assume it’s the same character.

The classic example of this from my TV youth was
Columbo. The character played by Peter Falk was always in a wrinkled beige
trench coat carrying a cigar he never smoked with one eye askew. And he was
kind of clumsy physically and socially. But he was smart and people always
underestimated him. We loved that. And we remembered him. If you recall, no one
else on the show was dressed like him or behaved like him.

I am constantly looking for fresh tags I can use in my
writing when I watch people around me. I started dancing as a counter to
sitting around writing all the time. Dancers are a great source for tags,
especially in couple’s dancing. For example, there’s the guy with the plastic
black framed glasses that are too big for his face that he constantly pokes
back into place with his forefinger. And he wears big black shoes that look
clunky, but he’s cut and glued a chamois to the soles, so he can glide on the
dance floor in those shoes. And it turns out he used to be a dance instructor,
so he’s actually a pretty good dancer. And he’s almost always in a short-sleeved
collared sports shirt that’s some shade of teal. See, you’re already involved with this guy. I didn’t
tell you his name or how tall he is or how old but you’ve already got a picture
of him in your head.

Notice I didn’t have to give a lot of details. Just a
few, and the reader will fill in the blanks. In fact, that’s one of the things
I don’t like about television and movies, especially if they are remaking a
book. I prefer the pictures I have in my head of the characters to what the
producer came up with.

Here’s an illustration of tags I like to use in my
writing classes. If I tell you a woman walks in to a room and her hair is
pulled back into a bun, she has on a dress that hangs to mid-calf, and she has
on SAS shoes. I don’t have to tell you she hasn’t had a date in five years. And
notice you don’t have to know what SAS shoes are to get the picture they look
like dark-colored versions of the shoes nurses wear. You made that up in your
head, too.

If I wanted to surprise the reader, I could have all
the men in the room vying for her attention. I could even put a beautiful
blonde cheerleader type in the corner of the room that everyone is ignoring.
Now the reader will want to know why the men pay attention to the SAS shoe gal
and not the cheerleader, and the reader will start to make up reasons in their
head. And I’ve already got a story brewing because I created conflict with my
tags.

So you need tags. And if you don’t have them, even if
you’ve gone into long detailed descriptions about your character’s appearance,
your reader won’t remember. In fact, I avoid long, detailed descriptions about
anything. I like to paint the picture with a few well-chosen strokes that are
playing double and triple duty, like I did in my SAS shoe gal example. It’s fun
and elegant to create a brief description that sets up potential conflict, and
plays off the reader’s assumptions and stereotypes.

Motivation is another thing that will help your reader
care about your characters. I recently was in an airport that had a special
table in front of a bookstore which had multiple copies of two paperback
versions of The Girl On The Train by
Paula Hawkins with different covers, and then a hard back version. But no other
books on the table. So I asked the bookseller why. And when he explained one paperback
was the original version written by the author, and the other was the movie
version of the book, and that both paperbacks would cost the same as the
original hard-cover version, I bought the two paperbacks. Since I’ve done some
writing for television, I wanted to compare the original to the movie version.

I had time on the plane so I started with the original
paperback version, and I can tell you had it not been a New York Times best-seller, I would have put it down after about
five pages, then deposited the book in the nearest paper recycling bin once I
got off the plane. Because the girl on the train was someone I didn’t like at
all. And it was because her motivation was nothing short of selfish and
despicable, when there was any. Most of the time she was like a leaf blowing in
the wind with no motivation whatsoever. It’s a principle of fiction that
readers don’t like victims and this gal was definitely in victim mode.

My friend, and multiple Spur award-winning western
author, Dusty Richards says your character needs to be motivated toward a goal
and that you cannot remind the reader too many times of what that goal is.

I don’t know if I need to mention this, but the character’s
main goal is always broken down into sub-goals. For example, let’s say there’s
an old-west sheriff character on horseback. He can barely see in the moonlight. But he needs to make it over the next
rise before sunrise to the bad guy's camp to see if the thief he's after is in his
bunk, and can be apprehended. The goal is to catch the thief, but the
sub-goal is to make it over the next rise by sunup.

And, of course, there are obstacles to each goal,
which is what keeps the reader engaged and the story moving. The character
should have deeper motivation, usually produced by a painful past, that drives him as well. Like our cowboy sheriff hates thieves because a thief stole
grandma’s fall harvest back when the character was a little tyke and grandma
died that next winter.

The obstacles also need to be reasonable obstacles,
not ones the character creates by their own stupidity. In the romance writing
world, they have an acronym for this mistake in character development: characters
who are TSTL (Too Stupid To Live). Readers are not interested in “I Love Lucy”
plots where it’s all about manipulation and deception for some inane goal, like
an elaborate deception to keep Ricky from finding out Lucy spent $5 more on
groceries this week than the budget allows.

And The Girl On
The Train so reminded me of “I Love Lucy,” only not as kind and gentle. It
began with a good fifty pages of boring narrative about this woman who rides a commuter
train back and forth past a row of houses every day, laced with detailed
descriptions of the landscape, houses and the players, in between bouts of this
woman drinking herself into a stupor at night. We finally get to something
happening many chapters in, which is a murder. But even then, the main
character was TSTL until nearly halfway through the book. What made it all
worthwhile was the really satisfying ending, which of course, I had my doubts
would actually happen in real life. But it was accomplished by a secondary character
I had some respect for, who was helped by the main character, and that made it
somewhat plausible.

I’m sure in a case like this, the author would argue
people really behave the way she wrote them. And I agree. That does not mean,
however, that I’m willing to pay money to put up with reading about it. (I did
a little research and found out Paula Hawkins is British journalist, and I hear
the Brits are accustomed to this take-a-while approach to getting into a story.)
The only thing that kept me going was all the hoopla about the book, which I
still think was rather unfounded. But I can see how the ending would strike a
chord with women, who are the main readers of fiction. So I get it.

Now away from the book review and back to my subject,
tags and motivation are the two things writers can utilize to make readers
care. If you don’t have those two things, readers aren’t going to care. And
they really want to care, so they’re disappointed when they can’t or don’t. Making
the reader care is part of the job as a writer, but it’s not particularly hard
work if you know what you’re doing. And I think it’s fun work – clever tags
coupled with motivation that’s obvious and deeper motivation peeled back in
layers. That’s the ticket.

Now, to be quite honest, we all stand on the shoulders
of giants, and I’m no exception. I have several writers to thank for this
information, including my romance writing friends, specifically Debbie Macomber
and Jodi Thomas. Romance is very character driven, so those gals were a big
help to me. And Dusty Richards, who is quite a character in his own right in
his ten-gallon white hat and hands so big he has to buy special keyboards with
extra wide keys to keep from “fat fingering” when he types his manuscripts.

I also want to thank the people who gave me feedback,
because that consistent feedback created a tangible problem that I could then
take to the “big boys.” But even with help, it took a while for me to wrap my
head around this.

So if you’ve gotten the “I don’t care about these
characters” feedback, then give your characters tags and motivation. If you
think you already have, make changes anyway, and see if you can hit on a something
that works for you. Because if you can make the reader care about your
characters, that’ll keep them engaged in your story.

Bio: Linda Rohrboughhas been writing since 1989, and has more than
5,000 articles and seven books to her credit, along with writing for
television, and seven national awards for her fiction and non-fiction. An
iPhone App of Linda’s popular “Pitch Your Book” workshop is available in the
Apple iTunes store. Find her on Facebook as “Linda Rohrbough – Author” or visit
her website:www.LindaRohrbough.com.

Monday, February 13, 2017

Horrors! It is one of Shannon
Lawrence’s favorite words. She has been writing horror for a long time and has
a lot of fun with it. She also dabbles in fantasy and elsewhere. Shannon is a
short story expert, and has two novels in the editing phase. There is a third
novel in the works about killer squirrels. A horror comedy. As a short story
author, she is constantly juggling rejections, acceptances, resubmissions, and
releases. She shares some of her tools of the trade with us.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: Do you set daily, weekly, or monthly writing goals? If yes,
what are they? What do you do to insure you meet these goals?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: I don't, because I've found I'm naturally a sprinter. I can go days
without writing, then knock out a ton of progress in one day or a succession of
days. Forcing it just stresses me out and lowers the quality of what I'm trying
to write. I used to have some guilt over this, feeling like a failure, but I've
finally realized I'm getting things done my way, and that's okay.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: If you have a completed manuscript/story/poem/flash have you
submitted it yet? What have the results been? How do you get past the
"No's"? What do your reject letters say? What best advice, or lessons
learned, have you gotten from them?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: I'm not currently submitting any novels, but I have a bunch of short
story submissions out right now. My goal is to have twenty out at one time, but,
of course, I'd rather they get placed. I get more rejections than acceptances,
but that's the world of short stories. I keep track of them on a spreadsheet
and keep every rejection I get. The more I submit, the easier "no"
gets, unless it's a publication I really wanted into or thought I had a good
chance of getting into. Rejection letters are usually form letters due to the
sheer number of rejections, but one thing I've collectively learned from
rejections is not to hold back in your submissions. And if you have a strong
opening, make sure the rest of the story follows.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: What does success mean to you?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: Success is always morphing for me. I kept saying "When I'm a
multi-published author, I'll…" until a friend corrected and me and said,
"You realize you ARE a multi-published author, right?" Originally,
success to me was getting a novel published, and nothing else counted. But
every step of the way is a success. I keep mini-goals along the way, such as
having twenty stories on submission at once, getting a story into one of Ellen
Datlow's anthologies, and more. Each one of these mini-goals met means another
success. However, I would also like to be a published novelist, so that will be
another type of success.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: Does success scare or motivate you?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: Both. I go through ups and downs. Sometimes the thought of having
deadlines and having more expected from me is terrifying. As a short story
author, I set my own pace. No one gets to require anything of me. But once I
get into Novel World, there will be deadlines, possibly multi-book contracts
where they have to be delivered by a specific time. And that will change the
game. At the same time, I WANT to be there. It's just a scary concept.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR:
What do you do when procrastination is winning over writing?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: I try to figure out why. What is it that's distracting me. What do I
need. I suffer from depression and anxiety, and those are most often the cause
of my procrastination. Maybe I'm doubting my work. Or maybe it's just an off
week for me, period, not just in writing, and I need to take a step back and
focus on something else for a while.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: Writing conferences, workshops, and
critique groups are an important part of the new writer's experiences (and more
experienced writers too!). How have they helped you?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: I'm not sure where I'd be if I hadn't found both Pikes Peak Pen Women
and Pikes Peak Writers. Plus, my critique groups. Pikes Peak Pen Women was the
first writer's group I joined. They were also the first ones to give me the
opportunity to be a presenter, giving me the confidence to keep doing that and
to branch out. It was far less scary having them reach out to me and say,
"Hey, can you speak on this topic?" than to suck it up and submit a
workshop proposal without ever having given a workshop. Pikes Peak Writers
helped me join the writing community at large, making it a place of comfort
instead of fear. They were the second ones to give me the opportunity to speak,
which was at AuthorFest in Manitou Springs. And the workshops, both at
conference and in the Write Brains, are what gave me the encouragement and
knowledge I needed to go forward and improve my writing. As far as critique
groups, my first in-person one taught me a lot about critique, and helped me
learn what needed to be changed in my writing.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: How long have you been a member of Pikes Peak Writers?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: I believe I've been a member for five or six years now.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR:
Do you attend the events, and, if so, which ones are your favorites?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: I attend PPWC each year, and have held some manner of conference
position every one of those years. There's a lot of energy to be soaked up at
PPWC, and so many opportunities. I also ran the non-conference events,
including Write Brains for about two years, so I'm taking a bit of a break from
attending, but I still go to one occasionally. I've only attended one Open
Critique, but it was a great program, and I go to Writer's Nights when I can. I
would attend more of these if I just had more time, but I have to balance my
evenings like I'm sure everyone does.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: Do you have any "self-help for writers" books that
you use regularly? How do they help? Please share your list of your top 2 or 3.

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: King's "On Writing" is an excellent craft book for authors,
whether they write horror or something else. It's often cited as a favorite by
other folks I've spoken with. I don't use any regularly, but a couple other
good ones I've read are "The Art of Character," by David Corbett,
"Writing with Emotion, Tension, & Conflict," by Cheryl St. John,
and Stuart Horwitz's "Book Architecture" series.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: Does your reading influence your writing? How?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: I'm sure it does, but I don't know to what extent. I read a lot; I
write a lot. I try to read in all different genres. There is no genre I can say
I have not read in some way, shape, or form. I want to read all different types
of stories and voices.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: If you met someone who was thinking about writing, what advice
would you give them?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: I'd tell them to write. Don't think about starting, just write. Until
you do, you're not a writer. Figure out what works for you and do it. Set a
schedule or don't. Set goals or don't. Just write.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: What is one (or a few) of the most important lessons you
have learned so far?

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: Be resilient. Understand a rejection is not about you, and isn't even
typically a judgment of your work. It's simply saying that particular story
didn't jive with one particular editor or agent. Turn around and resubmit. Take
in any and all feedback, mull it over, and then decide what you'll listen to
and what you'll dismiss. If you don't believe what they said, you won't be true
to your writing if you change it to what they want. So don't change something
just because someone told you to. Change it because what they said struck a
chord with you. Weather the lows so you can move forward and find the success
you want for yourself.

KATHIE
SCRIMGEOUR: What expertise in your background do you draw on in your
writing? (ie were you a photographer, chef, court reporter, FBI agent?)

SHANNON
LAWRENCE: I wouldn't say I have job expertise I bring to my writing, but
knowing kids has come into play, and personal experiences have informed my
writing.

About the Author: A
fan of all things fantastical and frightening, Shannon Lawrence
writes in her dungeon when her minions allow, often accompanied by her
familiars. She writes primarily horror and fantasy. Her stories can be found in
several anthologies and magazines, including Once Upon a Scream, The Literary
Hatchet, and Dark Moon Digest. She serves on the board of Pikes Peak Writers as
treasurer. When she's not writing or volunteering, she's hiking through the
wilds of Colorado and photographing her magnificent surroundings. Though she
often misses the ocean, the majestic and rugged Rockies are a sight she could
never part with. Besides, in Colorado there's always a place to hide a body or
birth a monster. What more could she ask for?

Pikes Peak Writers

Welcome to the official blog of Pikes Peak Writers. We aim to inform, educate, enrich, and entertain writers. NOTE: The posts appearing on this blog may not be reposted or reprinted without the express permission of the author and Pikes Peak Writers.